If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

I need your prayers.

I'm falling back into a sin that has gripped me for years now. I need all the help I can get. I thought I could do this through my prayers alone, and now I know I can't. Fellowship is needed, and I feel a fellowship with many of you here. Please help...

Specifically, pornography.

John 10 (KJV)
27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.

Re: I need your prayers.

Something bad (inconvenient) happened recently? I am asking because sometimes that can shoot a hole in our defensive shield and we are starting to look for some sort of compensation. It's why an ex alcoholist starts to drink again, the urge to feel the kick of winning starts to pull to gamble again, the wish not to feel any longer for the ex drug addict, these are all forms of looking for compensation.

Re: I need your prayers.

Originally Posted by Ceegen

I'm falling back into a sin that has gripped me for years now. I need all the help I can get. I thought I could do this through my prayers alone, and now I know I can't. Fellowship is needed, and I feel a fellowship with many of you here. Please help...

Specifically, pornography.

You are right about our prayers alone not helping when it's us in bondage AND you are so right about the fellowship being critical for these types of things. In fact, that's a Biblical teaching. I'll show you.

2 Timothy 2:22 (You can remember this verse because of all of those "2's")

"So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart."

STEP 1: "Flee youthful passions ...."

To me, flee means to not even entertain the thought when it germinates in our minds. That was Eve's downfall. She considered eating the fruit - convincing herself that it was something worth pursuing - no harm. She let the temptation grow roots in her mind and blossom. She watered the thoughts with more thoughts and justifications until sin bore fruit in her. When thoughts - of anything that has us in bondage and pornography is just one thing on that huge list - but when these thought enter our minds, we need to train ourselves to reject it in a "fleeing" fashion. Just like we would start slinging our hands if we looked down and saw a spider crawling on us. THAT's fleeing! But that's not enough......but it's where most people stop and usually crawl back to the thoughts in defeat.

STEP 2: ...and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace.....

If we are running quickly away from something, we won't run hard enough or fast enough unless we are running TO something. Something better. Something of more sound mind. The Bible says here that it is "righteousness, faith, love, and peace". Only you can determine what these four terms mean concretely, to you. You might want to do a personal Bible study as to what those four word mean. God will show you his way of escape and what to run TO when temptations attack your mind. This is just my personal opinion and I may be dead wrong, in terms of fleeing sins - these four things listed here should be in concrete in nature. Something tangible or if not tangible, something obvious and pre-planned AS a way of escape. Pornography is a concrete thing. The mind, in fleeing from the youth lusts - will not readily run to something that isn't concrete - auditory, visual, or kinetic. What I mean by that as an example is [and this is just off the top of my head - I don't know what will actually work for you]:

"righteousness" - Pre-plan some memory verses that you can cite out loud and hear the words of how God does not want you in this bondage or listen to a CD of whatever Christian music you like

"faith" - Keep a journal of your prayers to God - write them out and speaking them aloud as you go and include all the times he rescued you from temptation

"love" - have some Christian friends who love you that you could be accountable to

"peace" - go running; do some exercise; watch a favorite TV show that makes you laugh

As I said, only you can decide what these four attributes that God said to "pursue" mean in your life.

STEP 3: ...along with those who call on the Lord with a pure heart."

And there it is - just what you said - fellowship! The more you can talk about this with a small group of others - preferably in person, the more power YOU gain over IT. When we keep things locked away inside of us out of shame or guilt or fear or doubts - those "things" rule over us. We think we are alone in the struggles. And we don't know where to run. Fellowship is a big key here - with any type of bondage.

Did you know that the founders of Alcoholics Anonymous met in a bar? They were just two drunks who met one night and in talking, had a few things in common. So they drank and talked. They met over several weeks and began to notice that the more they talked about everything they are going through and that they were putting their families through - the less they drank. So .... they decided to meet in one of their homes the next week and not a bar. And the rest is history.

Re: I need your prayers.

Originally Posted by Ceegen

I'm falling back into a sin that has gripped me for years now. I need all the help I can get. I thought I could do this through my prayers alone, and now I know I can't. Fellowship is needed, and I feel a fellowship with many of you here. Please help...

Specifically, pornography.

Will pray. Porn is like a drug, highly addictive. Put up some guardrails to help in times of temptation (content filter ALL your internet access).

Re: I need your prayers.

Originally Posted by Reynolds357

Will pray. Porn is like a drug, highly addictive. Put up some guardrails to help in times of temptation.

Amen! Researchers are finding that when people indulge in porn, they release powerful chemicals in their brain and body. Mark Kastleman, author of The Drug of the New Millennium, said, "There are a growing number of therapists and psychologists who are saying that this is as addictive as cocaine," or alcohol, or even heroin. He explained that, when people view porn, "It causes the brain to release what we call endogenous drugs or endogenous chemicals. 'Endogenous' meaning 'produced from within.' So where cocaine or alcohol seek to mimic the brain's natural chemicals, pornography releases the real deal. And so we have things like adrenaline, epinephrine, ACTH."

Galatians 6:14 - But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

Re: I need your prayers.

Originally Posted by ProDeo

[Q] - What have all addictions in common?

[A] - They temporarily cause some stress relief.

[S]olution - Deal with what causes the stress.

Many addictions have nothing to do with stress. I am friends with an oxycodone addict. He got on oxy after surgery. By the time the pain was manageable without it, he was hooked on it. I take pain medicine for my back, hand, and knee. It is not mentally addictive, but it is incredibly physically addictive. I forgot to take it with me on a road trip and I was in severe withdrawal in 36 hours. Had to get prescription transferred. I do not want to quit taking the medicine, but if I ever did, it would be a long detox process. My taking it has nothing to do with mental stress; it has to do with being worn out from years of sports and work related injuries.

Re: I need your prayers.

Originally Posted by Reynolds357

Many addictions have nothing to do with stress. I am friends with an oxycodone addict. He got on oxy after surgery. By the time the pain was manageable without it, he was hooked on it. I take pain medicine for my back, hand, and knee. It is not mentally addictive, but it is incredibly physically addictive. I forgot to take it with me on a road trip and I was in severe withdrawal in 36 hours. Had to get prescription transferred. I do not want to quit taking the medicine, but if I ever did, it would be a long detox process. My taking it has nothing to do with mental stress; it has to do with being worn out from years of sports and work related injuries.

Sorry to hear that. Actually we can shake hands, like you I daily need a lot of painkillers too. But addiction out of necessity is not what I had mind, the addictions as I mentioned in post #2 are. And (I think) pornography (the OP) belongs to that list that are an unwanted result of a deeper lying problem.

Re: I need your prayers.

Praying for you, brother. I fully understand, as I have several things that tend to tempt me as well. I am sober still, and have been since 1992 of both drugs and booze. It can be difficult for any of us: so I will pray daily for your situation.

"You're gonna make a difference when you lay down your life, and in complete submission to God, choose to die with Him in service to other people."

"Sometimes it concerns me,﻿ you know, the number of people that can quote my songs, and-- or they can quote the songs of several different people, but they can't quote the Scriptures."http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZLFGZ6zpeI
Rich Mullins

For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father